Best Albums of the 1970s

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Listed below are the best albums of the 1970s as calculated from their overall rankings in over 53,000 greatest album charts.

Best albums by year or decade

Decade:

Year:

1970s decade summary

Year	Albums The number of albums from each year featuring in the greatest album charts.	Score Total rank score for each year (made up of the total rank score from all albums in that year)	Top Ranked Album The top ranked album from each year and where it ranks in the overall chart.
1970	2,040	259,514	Paranoid (54th)by Black Sabbath
1971	2,140	328,618	Untitled (Led Zeppelin IV) (12th)by Led Zeppelin
1972	2,179	259,913	The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stard... (9th)by David Bowie
1973	2,066	266,338	The Dark Side Of The Moon (2nd)by Pink Floyd
1974	1,954	139,470	Red (143rd)by King Crimson
1975	2,109	225,716	Wish You Were Here (7th)by Pink Floyd
1976	2,102	150,009	Songs In The Key Of Life (86th)by Stevie Wonder
1977	2,118	255,820	Rumours (21st)by Fleetwood Mac
1978	2,164	145,630	Darkness On The Edge Of Town (206th)by Bruce Springsteen
1979	2,095	212,552	London Calling (20th)by The Clash
Total	20,967	2,243,579

The best artists of the 1970s were Pink Floyd, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, Neil Young, The Rolling Stones, The Clash, Fleetwood Mac, Black Sabbath, The Who and Genesis.

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The Dark Side Of The Moon

Pink Floyd

Year of Release:

1973

Appears in:

4,044 charts

Rank Score:

70,585

Rank in 1973:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

92 (5,218 votes)

Comments:

582

Wish You Were Here

Pink Floyd

Year of Release:

1975

Appears in:

2,918 charts

Rank Score:

50,738

Rank in 1975:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

91 (3,960 votes)

Comments:

308

The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars

David Bowie

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

2,936 charts

Rank Score:

49,853

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

90 (3,456 votes)

Comments:

299

Untitled (Led Zeppelin IV)

Led Zeppelin

Year of Release:

1971

Appears in:

3,070 charts

Rank Score:

44,133

Rank in 1971:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

Year of Release:

1979

Appears in:

2,758 charts

Rank Score:

35,943

Rank in 1979:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

87 (3,093 votes)

Comments:

256

Rumours

Fleetwood Mac

Year of Release:

1977

Appears in:

2,203 charts

Rank Score:

34,066

Rank in 1977:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

Year of Release:

1979

Appears in:

2,207 charts

Rank Score:

29,974

Rank in 1979:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

87 (3,420 votes)

Comments:

261

Animals

Pink Floyd

Year of Release:

1977

Appears in:

1,714 charts

Rank Score:

25,483

Rank in 1977:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

Year of Release:

1979

Appears in:

1,919 charts

Rank Score:

24,868

Rank in 1979:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

87 (2,280 votes)

Comments:

189

10.

Who's Next

The Who

Year of Release:

1971

Appears in:

2,130 charts

Rank Score:

23,963

Rank in 1971:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

86 (2,493 votes)

Comments:

200

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Total albums: 1,000. Page 1 of 100

Best Albums of the 1970s composition

Year	Albums	%

1970	107	11%
1971	100	10%
1972	102	10%
1973	108	11%
1974	99	10%
1975	98	10%
1976	90	9%
1977	89	9%
1978	109	11%
1979	98	10%

Artist	Albums	%

David Bowie	12	1%
Genesis	10	1%
Jethro Tull	9	1%
Wishbone Ash	8	1%
The Rolling Stones	8	1%
Electric Light Orchestra	8	1%
Miles Davis	8	1%
Show all

Country	Albums	%

	387	39%
	370	37%
	43	4%
	37	4%
	37	4%
	24	2%
	20	2%
Show all

Compilation?	Albums	%
No	974	97%
Yes	26	3%

Live?	Albums	%
No	939	94%
Yes	61	6%

Soundtrack?	Albums	%
No	988	99%
Yes	12	1%

« View best albums of the 1960sView best albums of the 1980s »

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Best Albums of the 1970s
1. The Dark Side Of The Moon by Pink Floyd
2. Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd
3. The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars by David Bowie
4. Untitled (Led Zeppelin IV) by Led Zeppelin
5. London Calling by The Clash
6. Rumours by Fleetwood Mac
7. The Wall by Pink Floyd
8. Animals by Pink Floyd
9. Unknown Pleasures by Joy Division
10. Who's Next by The Who
11. Blood On The Tracks by Bob Dylan
12. Exile On Main St. by The Rolling Stones
13. Hunky Dory by David Bowie
14. Marquee Moon by Television
15. Pink Moon by Nick Drake
16. What's Going On by Marvin Gaye
17. Paranoid by Black Sabbath
18. Low by David Bowie
19. Sticky Fingers by The Rolling Stones
20. Blue by Joni Mitchell